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Educational App Center on Learning Platforms

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Since I'm in an educational institution, I've always asked myself what technology could do to help make education better and innovative (that is the very purpose of the CIECT Unit). I am also quite young and I am quite active on social media. I am also a commerce student. I recently read up on the statistics with regards to Mark Zuckerberg and his creation of thousands of jobs that includes employment of app developers for games found on Facebook.

Most university students, if not all university students spend hours on end playing games on Facebook's App Center. This App Center host hundred of thousands of games that could and would blow your mind. These games range from Arts to Business to Educational categories that keep the students or player glued to the screen, one of those games being Pet Rescue Saga (Facebook App Center). This particular is one of the most played games on Facebook with over +10 million monthly users. Why not develop such a game that would save a scientist or lecturer by doing a bit of maths or trying to crack a word? This game would indeed be useful in all aspects.

Pet Rescue Saga (Facebook App Center)


That got me thinking: Why not assign a task/assignment to our fellow Computer Science students at my university to create an educational Facebook application or even iOS application (given the fact that Apple now allows for universities to be part of app development). This might seem very outlandish and too broad on the spectrum but these students need hands on practical experience. If not the students, then why not the Codejam team (Group of coders that organize a coding competition at the University of the Western Cape) assign this task to a group of app developers and creative thinkers who plan to participate in the competition?

Scrabble (Facebook App Centre)


Game words like Scrabble and 30 Seconds could all be played online via Facebook or the Ikamva site. The Ikamva site (Sakai Platform is java based) would be a great place to host these apps for that particular module (a game like monopoly that's online for Accounting students, word game like scrabble for English etc.). Not only will this promote learning among students but a mental stimulation and enjoyment in the module and course. Given the fact that the game will be played on the institution site, the game should be customized based on the preference of the lecturer, whether they need an English, Afrikaans or IsiXhosa version as per their curriculum.

The application platform could serve as a tool to boost moral and learning in and out of the classroom. Given the fact that this is all based on java, the application platform could also embed a chat room session where students can ask various questions relating to the game. The chat room platform could be used to ask for tips from fellow colleagues who then in turn "advance" to the top of the league table and gain extra points for tips. This may not be an idea that will save the world but it would be one of the most educational tools possible.

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